The federal law enforcement agency, the Investigative Committee,
reported that Amirov was detained over his suspected
masterminding of the killing of one of the agency’s leading
investigators in the region.

The officer, Arsen Gadjibekov, held the post of acting head of
the agency’s district directorate in Makhachkala and was heading
the probe into a string of contract hits when he was gunned down
near his home in the Dagestani city of Kaspiysk in December 2011.

The suspect’s high post and his ties with the heads of powerful
clans in the region prompted an unprecedented scale for the
detention operation. On Saturday, Amirov’s house was surrounded
by heavily-armed operatives with APC support, and two agents
entered the mayor’s premises saying he must come with them to
answer a few questions.

According to eyewitnesses, Amirov said he could answer the
questions on the spot, but the agents insisted, put him in an
armored vehicle and drove to a helicopter that landed on a square
right in the city center. The helicopter then flew straight to a
local airport and the mayor was taken to Moscow, where he was
charged with organizing an attempt on the life of a law enforcer.
On Sunday, a court ordered he be put in pre-trial custody.

The news immediately caused a sensation. Amirov has headed
Makhachkala, the largest city and the main economic center of
Dagestan, since 1998 and he has been a prominent member of the
Russian parliamentary majority United Russia party since the day
of its foundation.

But apart from official political career Amirov allegedly assumed
one of the top positions in the Dagestani criminal structures.
Since the early 1990s he has survived over a dozen attempts on
his life, including one of the gangsters’ bullets severing his
spine, putting him in a wheelchair and earning him the nickname
‘Bloody Roosevelt’ from opposition reporters.

Dagestani press suggested that Amirov was behind many murders of
many people - local businessmen who refused to share profits or
give up lucrative companies under the mayor’s control, as well as
stubborn officials and politicians who opposed the local mafia
clans.

Dagestani Interior Minister Adilgirey Magomedtagirov was one of
the officials who criticized Amirov and publicly announced that
he had proof that one of mayor’s sons had personally killed
several girls. In June 2009, the minister was killed by a sniper
as he was walking out of a wedding banquet.

Currently, one the mayor’s sons heads the Dagestani Service of
Court Marshalls and the other chairs the legislative committee of
the regional parliament. Immediately after their father was
arrested, both men said they were taking a vacation and refused
to talk to the media.

The Makhachkala authorities addressed the local residents with a
request not to complicate the situation by protesting, but still
a few dozen people took to the streets demonstrating their
support for Amirov. These rallies, however, finished without any
incidents or detentions.

Some observers noted that the absence of complications was due to
the perfect timing of the operation – while Investigative
Committee agents were apprehending Amirov, Dagestan’s major
football club Anzhi Makhachkala was playing CSKA Moscow in the
neighboring Chechen Republic, and many thousands of young and
active Dagestanis were simply out of the city.

The Investigative Committee also reported that they detained
about 10 people as part of the same case and all of them were
also taken to Moscow for investigation procedures and possibly
future trial.

At the same time, Russian news site Life News reported on Sunday
that a key witness in Amirov’s case, suspected drug dealer
Magomed Abdulgalimov, was found hanged in a cell of a pre-trial
detention center in the city of Pyatigorsk. He survived as
wardens managed to get him out of the noose in time and he was
also urgently taken to Moscow and placed under special protection
in a high security prison.

Life News said that Abdulgalimov’s attempted suicide, or
attempted murder, took place shortly before the start of the
operation to detain Amirov, but the Investigative Committee has
not issued official comments at the time of publication.

However, the Federal Service for Execution of Punishment refuted
the report on Monday afternoon, adding that there were no inmates
named Abdulgalimov in Pyatigorsk detention centers.

Acting head of Dagestan Ramazan Abdulatipov has told the press
that Amirov’s detention was a resolute step by the Federal
Authorities to bring order and stability to the region.

“Dissent is still rumbling in Dagestan. Many of those who
assume official posts here for many years are themselves
practicing ignorance and lawlessness,” Abdulatipov said.
“Now the law and order demanded by the head of our state
Vladimir Putin have arrived in Dagestan. We will seek to fulfill
this demand of the top authorities of the Russian
Federation.”

According to media reports, Amirov planned to compete with
Abdulatipov at the elections of the head of the republic that
will take place in September this year, but the arrest of the
mayor will apparently put an end to such ambition.